Holyoke rallies for win over Agawam

HOLYOKE – Trailing 12-0 at the half and owning an offense asleep in the deep against a swarming Agawam High defense, the Purple Knights of Holyoke High mustered two third quarter touchdowns and then hunkered down the rest of the way for a bruising 13-12 AA Conference verdict over the visiting Brownies.

Agawam’s no huddle offense utilized a sure-handed group of running backs as pass catchers for junior quarterback Mario Rigali (123 yards, one touchdown in the first half), keeping the Purple Knights off balance and guessing. Meanwhile, the Agawam defense, anchored by 6-2, 285-pound senior lineman Patrick Hope, totally bottlenecked Holyoke in the opening two quarters. Holyoke (3-1, 2-0 AA) mustered only a single first down by the first intermission.

Holyoke’s frustration with the ball was well illustrated on its very first series in the first quarter, deep in Agawam territory. A gift came after confusion reigned in the Agawam backfield when the Brownies boldly decided to go for it on fourth and 5 from their own 38. The ball bounced all the way back to the Agawam 14 and Holyoke was in business. But 4 plays later they remained on the 14, allowing a golden opportunity to slip away.

The Brownies rushed to the line on every offensive down and used some trickery for their first score. Junior running back A.J. Efstratios accepted the snap and found the team’s other A.J. (Breault) all alone in the end zone for a 2-yard hook-up, ending a 12-play march.

Along the way, Holyoke sacked Rigali twice for sizable setbacks, but a little swing pass to junior back Arthur Korotich for 22 yards followed by 18 more yards to Efstratios kept the Holyoke defenders back-pedaling.

Raul Torres earned every one of his 50 yards on 14 carries for Holyoke, while Antony Rodriguez added 33 yards for the Purple Knights.